Vianode opens battery R&D centre

Battery materials maker Vianode has opened the Vianode Technology Centre (VTC) at Kristiansand, in Norway, where it had opened an industrial pilot plant in 2021. This came barely a month after the company announced an investment of €194 million in a battery materials plant at Herøya.

The VTC is part of the expansion of R&D efforts. Features include analytical instruments, equipment for advanced electrochemistry testing and an application laboratory focused on the use of Vianode’s materials in battery manufacturing. Vianode plans to bring the total of employees there to 20 by the end of 202 and 25 by the end of 2025.

Vianode, which is owned by Elkem, Hydro and Altor, produces anode materials that are produced with up to 90% lower emissions than standard anode graphite materials, thanks to its specialised know-how in high-temperature processes, closed production systems, lower energy consumption and access to renewable energy. They are said to have “unique characteristics enabling faster charging, increased range and better recyclability”.

The plant at Herøya will produce anode graphite for about 20,000 EVs/year by 2024. Construction will be carried out in parallel with preparations for a second-phase plant scaled to provide battery materials to 2 million EVs/year by 2030. An EV typically contains on average up to 70 kg of graphite materials, representing a vital component of the battery.

“The global demand for batteries is growing rapidly, driven by the green transition, but there is not sufficient ramp-up of battery materials production. Europe is facing a significant shortfall of graphite materials towards 2030, which Vianode aims to address with our high-performance offerings,” said Stian Madshus, general manager of Vianode.